CORONA – The tipoff was moved two hours ahead Saturday for a CIF State Div. I basketball showdown between Taft High and host Corona Centennial, and the visiting Toreadors acted like it was short notice.

The Southern California Regional semifinal was the biggest game of the season – perhaps of all-time for Taft, which had never advanced past this round – yet the Toreadors didn’t seem ready to play, falling behind by 15 points in the opening minutes of a 94-81 loss at Roosevelt High.

“They just came out a lot harder and with a lot more intensity,” Taft guard Kris Yanku said. “We played hard and played good defense, but Corona hit a lot of hard shots, and they stayed hot the whole game.”

Taft (29-3) barely blinked before it was 24-9 on a 3-pointer by Centennial’s Gelaun Wheelwright with three minutes, 12 seconds remaining in the first quarter, and the rest was just a blur.

“We just did not come out ready, and we couldn’t stop them,” Yanku said.

It was Taft’s second loss to Centennial (30-4) following a three-point defeat Dec. 29, and for the second time the Toreadors were left scratching their heads, wondering how an opponent with no one taller than 6-foot-3 could defeat the much-taller Toreadors with a starting lineup that included 6-10 Kevin Johnson, 6-5 Stephen Maxwell, 6-5 C.J. Blackwell and 6-4 Spencer Dinwiddie.

“They do have a lot of size, but our shots were falling,” Wheelwright said. “We kept on fast-breaking them, and I think that affected Taft a lot. All those fast breaks got them tired.”

The 94 points was the most Taft has given up since at least the 2004-2005 season.

“We got them running and played a lot of pressure defense,” Dunning said. “It was hard work, but I’ll take three good guards over three big post guys every time. We got them running and playing our style. We proved we could beat them again tonight.”

By the fourth quarter, Johnson and Blackwell were on the bench, as Taft coach Derrick Taylor tried various combinations without cutting the lead to less than nine points in the second half.

The Toreadors have reached the City Section finals six times over the past eight seasons, winning three, but they’re yet to make an impact in the state tournament.

“We’re a regional semifinalist program. That is what we are,” said Taylor before slipping out the gymnasium door.

Centennial shot a 67.3 percent, making 33 of 49 shots, including 11 3-pointers compared to three for Taft.

“They shot 73 percent in the first half. They just couldn’t miss,” Yanku said.